And Tomorrow’s Winners Are . . .

by Staff, Utne Reader

| September-October 2008

image by Matt Hall, Shane Elliott, and Chris Melander

A run-of-the-mill Wal-Mart becomes a sustainable community space in BOX: An Urban Repository, one of the winners in Urban Re:Vision’s commerce competition. Blueprints were drawn up with an eye toward more local involvement, without sacrificing access to the wider economy: There are local food stands, trucking containers subdivide floor space into artist studios, and a “parking garden” sits where SUVs once dwelled. The Active Energy Playspace, an energy contest winner, proposes high-tech playgrounds to convert kid power into the real thing. Youngsters (or grown-ups) would play on modified slides, bikes, and treadmills, storing energy to keep the park’s LED lights on at night. A park-and-ride facility with an on-site farm, titled FARMING [PARK], was recognized in the community category for a futuristic design that connects public transportation with access to local food.